Sales and earnings updated at Walmart

BENTONVILLE, Ark. Health and wellness was among the top performing categories at Walmart during March, and combined with a strong start to Easter, it was enough for the company to indicate first-quarter sales and earnings would be at the high-end of the previously communicated range.

The home and grocery categories also were credited with helping the company’s U.S. stores division achieve a 0.6% same-store sales increase. That’s not a large number on a stand-alone basis, and it was below analysts’ expectation. Walmart, however, was quick to point out that results were negatively affected by a significant swing in the timing of Easter, which falls on April 11 this year, compared with March 23 last year. As a result of the shift, the majority of seasonal sales associated with Easter are likely to be reflected in April results.

Walmart was aggressive in its pursuit of Easter seasonal sales this year, and directly targeted the chain drug channel in a national television campaign that portrayed Walmart as a less expensive alternative for Easter products. In addition, the company continued to promote its $4 generic drug program on the cover of a circular distributed the week of March 29.

When March results are combined with actual results from February and anticipated results for April, Walmart expects total U.S. same store sales to be around the high end of a previously forecast range of 1% to 3% for the first quarter. As a result of the sales momentum and what cfo Tom Schoewe called, “expense control,” the company indicated first quarter earnings per share would be toward the high end of the range of $0.72 to $0.77 provided in February.

“We remain well positioned for today’s economy,” Castro-Wright said. “People are choosing to spend money in key discretionary categories across the stores, and this is translating to improvement is several areas of our business, including home.”

Shares of Walmart opened sharply lower from the prior day’s close of $52.61 despite the company’s assertion that once results for April are tallied sales and earnings would be at the high-end of earlier guidance.

Genetic abnormality found in males may lead to development of male contraceptive, study finds

IOWA CITY, Iowa A newly discovered genetic abnormality that appears to prevent some men from conceiving children could be the key for developing a male contraceptive, according to University of Iowa researchers reporting their findings in the April 2 online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Although female oral contraceptives were developed more than 40 years ago and have proven very effective for family planning, no similar pharmacological contraceptive has been developed for males. Surveys conducted by the Medical Research Council Reproductive Biology Unit in the United Kingdom, suggest that men would be willing to use a pharmacological contraceptive if one was available. Presently, the only contraceptives available for men are condoms or a vasectomy.

“We have identified CATSPER1 as a gene that is involved in non-syndromic male infertility in humans, a finding which could lead to future infertility therapies that replace the gene or the protein,” stated Michael Hildebrand, co-lead author of the study and a UI postdoctoral researcher in otolaryngology at the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine. “But, perhaps even more importantly, this finding could have implications for male contraception.”

The research team, which included scientists from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences in Tehran, Iran, discovered the male infertility gene while studying the genetics of families from Iran — a population that has relatively high rates of disease-causing gene mutations.

Although the team’s research with these Iranian families focuses on identifying genetic causes of deafness, collecting genetic information from this population allowed the researchers to identify two families where male infertility that was not part of a syndrome appeared to be inherited. The affected men’s infertility was diagnosed with a routine semen analysis.

Harvard University studies on mouse models that lack the CATSPER1 gene reveal how sperm is affected when the protein is missing or abnormal. These studies show that CATSPER1 mutations affect sperm motility, specifically the very vigorous hyperactive motion the sperm uses when it is entering the egg during fertilization.

“Our research suggests that the defect in sperm hyperactivity that is seen in mice without CATSPER1 will also occur in humans with the genetic mutation,” Hildebrand said. “Identification of targets such as the CATSPER1 gene that are involved in the fertility process and are specific for sperm — potentially minimizing side effects of a drug targeting the protein’s function — provide new targets for a pharmacological male contraceptive.”

Several approaches to male contraception are currently under investigation at other institutions. One approach that could potentially target CATSPER1 is immunocontraception where antibodies are developed that bind to a targeted protein and block its function. Immunocontraception is still in early stages of development and in order to be useful it will need to be proven effective, safe and reversible.

Mylan, Schering-Plough settle patent suit for allergy medication

PITTSBURGH Mylan has settled patent litigation related to a generic version of Schering-Plough’s Clarinex allergy medication, the Pittsburgh-based generic drug maker announced Wednesday.

Under the settlement of the case, in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, Mylan will have the right to market desloratadine tablets in the 5 mg strength in the United States starting July 1, 2012 or earlier, depending on certain circumstances, provided the Food and Drug Administration approves Mylan’s regulatory application. Depending on the status of Clarinex at that time, Mylan’s version may be a prescription or OTC drug.

Clarinex had sales of about $284 million in 2008, according to IMS Health data.

RELATED NEWS

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a generic of Hoffman-La Roche’s Tamiflu (oseltamivir phosphate) capsules from Lupin. The company’s generic will be available in 30-, 45- and 75-mg dosage strengths.
The product is inficated to treat acute, uncomplicated influenza A and B in patients 2 weeks of age and older, as well as to prevent influenza A and B in patients 1 year old and older. The drug had U.S. sales of roughly $467.8 million for the 12 months ended October 2017, according to IQVIA data.

Behavioral health pharmacy and telepsychiatry company Genoa, a QoL Healthcare Company, has reached a big number with its remote psychiatry offering. The Tukwila, Wash.-based company announced Tuesday that it had facilitated more than 100,000 telepsych consultations on its video conferencing platform.
Genoa attributes the milestone to its recent buildup of its telepsychiatry operations, which grew to include 35 in 2017 from 20 at the start of the year, and included 250 providers. In 2017, the company grew to serve more than 2,500 patients per week.

This year's flu continues to be Texas big, according to the Walgreens Flu Index released Wednesday, as the top 10 communities experiencing the greatest amount of flu incidence were all located in the Lone Star State for the week ended Jan. 6.
Iowa, Idaho and Arkansas rank behind Texas in terms of flu activity. And Montana, Idaho and Iowa ranked highest among states experiencing flu activity gains.

Amneal Biosciences has launched its generic of Otsuka’s Busulfex (busulfan injection, 6 mg/ml). The product is indicated to treat chronic myelogenous leukemia.
Amneal said that its generic is available in cartons of eight single-dose vials, each of which contains 60 mg of the drug in a 10-ml clear sterile solution. The product is made without natural rubber, latex, gluten or preservatives, Amneal said.
The drug had U.S. sales of roughly $80 million for the 12 months ended October 2017, according to data from IQVIA.

Amneal Pharmaceuticals has launched sevelamer carbonate tablets, 800 mg, in 270-count bottles. This generic from the Bridgewater, N.J.-based company is an AB-rated therapeutic equivalent to Renvela.
Amneal also launched five other products in addition to sevelamer carbonate:

Forgotten Password

Registration complete

REGISTER

USERNAME *

Spaces are allowed; punctuation is not allowed except for periods, hyphens, and underscores.

E-MAIL ADDRESS *

A valid e-mail address. All e-mails from the system will be sent to this address. The e-mail address is not made public and will only be used if you wish to receive a new password or wish to receive certain news or notifications by e-mail.

Password *

Confirm Password *

Please choose a password for your account; it must be 8 - 30 characters. .

First Name *

Last Name *

Company Name *

Job Title *

ZIP *

Are you a *

Retailer or Healthcare professional

Non-Retailer

How many stores do you operate?: *

Which best describes the business/industry you work in?: *

Which best describes your job title?: *

Please select the newsletters you would like to subscribe to

DSN A.M.
Daily news stories covering the retail drug industry

Breaking News
First-to-the-market with developing stories in the industry